Great Britain Young Guns Fire In Prague
GREAT BRITAIN Youth boss Neil Vatcher insists the “future is bright” after a strong Speedway of Nations 2 result.
Image courtesy of Taylor Lanning Photography
Will Cairns, Luke Harrison and Cooper Rushen finished fourth in the Final in Prague on Friday.
The youngsters were tied on 33 points with Germany and Australia, with the former nation taking Bronze by virtue of bonus points in the event.
Cairns top scored with 18, Harrison 12+1 and Rushen 3+1 in a battling display.
Vatcher said: “I’m extremely proud of the lads. Considering Will and Cooper are just 16, this is a wonderful result.
“We are naturally disappointed to miss out on Bronze. But they were the rules and it’s frustrating to come so close.
“All the boys were excellent from start to finish. It was incredible to end the night with a maximum score over Grand Prix rider Nazar Parnitskyi.
“The future is bright with these lads. I cannot fault them. Luke was an outstanding Captain and Cooper jumped in for the last race to get a paid win.
“It was a hard situation to only use Cooper once. Luke was terrific. He had two lasts but he was in the mix. To throw Cooper into the meeting cold could have backfired. It’s a position when you are damned if you do and damned if you don’t.
“But I have to say Cooper’s attitude was exemplary. He just got on with the job when we asked him to come in.”
Vatcher is confident that the medals will flow again for GB over the next couple of years.
He added: “I’m extremely proud. I’ve known these lads since they were in primary school, they joined the British Youth Championship aged eight or nine.
“To see them slugging it out and being successful in a World Championship Final is just sensational.
“We’ve got another four or five years of Will and Cooper at this level. I’m excited for what the future can bring.
“It was a tough build up to the event losing Jody Scott and Luke Killeen through injury. Cooper then had to postpone a school exam to attend for us.
“A big thank you to Cooper for taking the trouble to do that. A big well done to the GB backroom team and families of the lads who put in so much hard work. It was a fabulous team effort.”
RESULT
Poland 45
Denmark 37
Germany 33
Great Britain 33
Australia 33
Czech Republic 27
Sweden 23
Ukraine 21
Luke Harrison 12
Will Cairns 18
Cooper Rushen 3
